How to Deal with Rejection or Criticism

As a writer you deal with a lot of criticism, negativity, and rejection. I used to find this very difficult. Actually, I still find it difficult—just less so. One of the things I’ve learned along the way is that some people are negative all the time. I used to know a man who could turn any positive into a negative. When my first book was published he said, “Congratulations! Let’s hope people actually buy it—I’ve read that most books fail.”

I don’t think he was intentionally trying to bring me down, it was just how he saw the world (he dealt with any good news about himself in the same way). It bothered me until I realized that this was his problem, not mine.

If you have such a person in your life, once you recognize their pattern it will lose its power to depress you—but I’d still suggest not spending any more time with them than necessary.